Los Angeles County and the city will open a monkeypox vaccination site at Barnsdall Art Park tomorrow, but will only offer vaccinations to people who have previously registered with the county and been notified that a vaccine is available.
The new site at 4800 Hollywood Blvd. in the East Hollywood area is expected to vaccinate about 300 people a day, operating from noon to 4 p.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays, according to County Supervisor Hilda Solis’s office.
Monkeypox vaccines remain in short supply, so the site will not be open to visitors seeking a vaccine. Vaccines will only be distributed to people who have pre-registered and received a text message from the county notifying them that a dose is available.
“As the monkeypox outbreak continues, it is critical that we increase access to the vaccine for at-risk communities,” Solis said in a statement. “With the launch of the monkeypox vaccination site in Barnsdall Park, Los Angeles County is making it easier to vaccinate residents of the most affected communities. I encourage residents to assess their risk and take steps to protect themselves from monkeypox as we await additional doses for Los Angeles County.”
The county declared a local emergency in response to the monkeypox outbreak last week. The state and federal government have also issued such declarations.
According to the county, there were 616 confirmed or suspected cases in the county as of Monday, up from 500 on Friday. The vast majority of patients are men, and most of them are members of the LGBT community, according to the county.
Monkeypox is usually transmitted through intimate skin-to-skin contact, as a result of infectious rashes and scabs, although respiratory secretions and body fluids exchanged during prolonged physical episodes, such as sexual intercourse, can also lead to transmission. , according to the CDC. It can also be spread by sharing items like bedding and towels.
Symptoms include fresh pimples, blisters, rashes, fever, and fatigue. There is no specific treatment. People who have been infected with smallpox, or who have been vaccinated, may be immune to monkeypox.
According to health officials, the vaccine can prevent infection if given before or shortly after exposure to the virus.
Gay, bisexual and other men who have sex with men are at higher risk of contracting the virus, according to the CDC.
The county has been slowly expanding eligibility for the JYNNEOS monkeypox vaccine, but supplies remain extremely limited.
In Los Angeles County, monkeypox vaccines are available to people confirmed by the Department of Public Health to have had an immediate or high-risk contact with a known monkeypox patient, and to people who attended an event or visited a place where they had a high risk of exposure to a confirmed case. Those individuals are generally identified through the county’s contact tracing efforts and will be notified by the county.
Vaccines are also available for gay and bisexual men and transgender people diagnosed with rectal gonorrhea or early syphilis in the past year. Also eligible for the vaccines are gay or bisexual men or transgender people who are receiving HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis or PrEP, or who attended or worked in a commercial sex venue or other place where they had anonymous sex or sex with
multiple partners, such as in a sauna, bathhouse, or sex club, in the past 21 days.
Eligibility was expanded last week to include gay or bisexual men or transgender people over the age of 18 who have had multiple or anonymous sexual partners in the past 14 days.
People who think they meet any of the criteria can contact their health care provider to see if that provider can administer the vaccine.
Qualified individuals who do not have a health care provider, or whose provider does not have the vaccine, may schedule an appointment at a designated immunization clinic or walk-in location. Information is available at ph.lacounty.gov/monkeypox. A list of places where monkeypox is vaccinated is available at http://publichealth.lacounty.gov/chs/DPHMonkeypoxSchedule.pdf.
Last week, the county activated a website, ph.lacounty.gov/monkeypoxsignup, where residents can fill out an online form to see if they may be eligible for a vaccine and pre-register to be added to a waiting list. But due to overwhelming demand and limited vaccine supplies, the pre-registration process was put on hold at the end of last week.
Last week, the county also opened a monkeypox vaccination site at the West Hollywood Library, 647 N. San Vicente Blvd., for people who pre-registered for the vaccine. It will be open by appointment only from 9 am to 6 pm
The vaccine is a two-shot regimen, so additional supplies will be set aside to provide second doses for those who received the initial shot.
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